News List

Aug. 23, 2013
Here is the latest edition of Week In Review - a series of weekly messages from the Mayor and City Council to help Richardson residents and businesses keep up to date on events at City Hall.

City Council Holds Public Hearing on Proposed Budget
The City Council’s second public hearing on the proposed 2013-2014 tax rate will take place at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 26, at City Hall.

The theme of this year’s budget is “Maintaining a Solid Foundation,” and it emphasizes reinvestment in infrastructure through improved maintenance for streets, City facilities and parks. It also includes funds to upgrade the City’s 911 system, implement the Cultural Arts Master Plan and improve the Solid Waste Service. The budget is supported by a proposed tax rate of $0.63516 per $100 of assessed valuation, unchanged from the 2012-2013 rate.

All budget meetings are open to the public. In addition, the meetings are also broadcast live on CITV (Channel 16 on Time Warner and Channel 99 on AT&T U-Verse) and on the City website, cor.net. City Council videos and documents are also available on-demand on the City’s website.

City to Conduct Ground Spraying for Mosquitoes Tonight and Saturday
The Richardson Health Department plans to ground spray two separate areas tonight and Saturday night, weather permitting, in order to help prevent the spread of the West Nile virus. The decision to spray comes after City Health Department workers were notified that traps located within the subject spraying locations returned mosquitoes that tested positive for carrying the disease.

The two spray areas are:

Cottonwood Creek east to Central Expressway and Arapaho Road south to Spring Valley Road.

Plano Road east to President George Bush Turnpike and East Renner Road south to East Lookout Drive.

The spraying is scheduled to take place between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m. each night.

Richardson began its West Nile virus monitoring program in April, which is the earliest it has ever begun testing for signs of the virus. The Richardson City Council approved increased surveillance this year due to the heightened incidence of West Nile virus cases experienced in the Metroplex in 2012.

For more information on Richardson's mosquito abatement program please visit cor.net/mosquito.

Family Aquatic Center Open 2 More Weekends
Most City of Richardson pools have closed for the season, but Heights Family Aquatic Center will be open for daily use from noon to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and Aug. 31-Sept. 2. Heights Family Aquatic Center is at 709 W. Arapaho Rd.

RISD, PISD Classes Begin Monday
Richardson traffic engineers tested school crossing signals this week to make sure they are working correctly in preparation for the upcoming school year, which begins Monday, Aug. 26. The City has 84 flashing signals in 28 school zones, which includes campuses in Richardson and Plano ISDs.

Officers will be monitoring school zones starting next week to help ensure the safety of the estimated 39,000 RISD students heading back to school this year, with almost half of them attending campuses in the City of Richardson. Richardson police will enforce the ban on using handheld communication devices in active school zones.

Central Expressway Frontage Road to Close for Drainage Construction
The northbound US 75 (Central Expressway) frontage road at Belt Line Road/Main Street will be closed for construction beginning at 9 p.m. both Monday and Tuesday nights. The road will reopen at 6 a.m. the following morning.

Northbound traffic will be detoured east on Main Street, north on Interurban Street and west on Greer Street during the closure. Motorists are advised not to cut through private property (including parking lots) during the detour.

The planned schedule is subject to change due to potential weather and construction complications.

After that work is complete, northbound frontage road traffic will be reduced to one lane for approximately four weeks as construction continues. Signs and other traffic control devices will be in place to direct motorists. In addition, the U-turn lane from the southbound to the northbound frontage road will be closed daily from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The construction is part of a project to improve drainage in the Floyd Branch Watershed, which collects drainage from 2.6 square miles in south central Richardson and eventually flows to White Rock Lake. The project will add capacity to the area’s drainage system by adding new underground drainage pipes north and south of Main Street between US 75 and the DART rail line. No existing open channels will be enclosed.

Improvement work also includes the installation of a new right turn lane along westbound Main Street from Interurban Street to the US 75 northbound frontage road and construction of a new bridge over Floyd Creek Branch at West Phillips Street. In addition to improving the decades-old drainage system, improving drainage system deficiencies will also allow for the possibility of future development since current conditions have been a costly deterrent to redevelopment along the City’s Main Street and Central Expressway corridors.

Final completion of the project is expected in spring of 2014.

Bush Turnpike Ramps to Close This Weekend
Construction at eastbound and westbound ramps at Campbell Road on President George Bush Turnpike (PGBT) will close through the weekend, beginning at 8 p.m. tonight and ending at approximately 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 26.

The closure will affect the eastbound PGBT entrance ramp from Campbell Road and the westbound exit ramp to Campbell Road. Eastbound motorists should use the entrance ramp at North Garland Avenue, while westbound motorists should use the North Garland Avenue exit ramp to access Campbell Road.

The closure is due to ongoing construction by the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) to convert to all-electronic toll collection.

For more information about this and other scheduled lane closures, visit NTTA.org or call 214-224-3030.

DART Schedules, Routes to Change Monday
Dallas Area Rapid Transit will make scheduling adjustments to more than a dozen bus routes and the Red, Green and Orange rail lines beginning Monday. Bus route 582 will be extended during morning and afternoon rush hours from LBJ/Central Station to serve the Forest Lane Station.

Rich-Tone Chorus to Perform at Eisemann Center
The Rich-Tone Chorus will present “Highway to Harmony” at 3 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 at the Eisemann Center. A capella group Street Corner Symphony will perform as part of the show.

Tickets cost $15 to $40 and are available online at eisemanncenter.com or by calling the Eisemann Center Ticket Office at 972-744-4650. The Ticket Office is open from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday and one hour before performances. For more information about the show, visit richtones.org.

Chamber Business Trade Show at Civic Center
The Richardson Business Trade Show will take place from noon to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, at the Richardson City Hall/Civic Center Complex at 411 W. Arapaho Rd. About 70 local businesses will set up booths to meet with customers, suppliers and colleagues. More than 1,000 people are expected to attend.

Richardson Animal Shelter Pet of the Week
The beautiful kitty is Willa. When Willa came to the Shelter she was nursing three kittens. She was a wonderful mother and cared for them all. Since then, all her kittens have been adopted. Now Willa is ready to go to her new home! She has been spayed and was given proper vet care during the nursing. She is so sweet and is a Shelter favorite. We think she is two years old.